5 tips to avoid unnecessary business costs

Want to keep your business costs down – there here are a few things to consider:

Seek advice

First and foremost, seek advice from those with experience of setting up a business or working in your sector. A good first port of call is your trade organisation – membership is likely to bring you a variety of benefits including up-to-date information on industry best practice, business advice relevant to your sector and potentially trade discounts too.

In addition, seek out your local enterprise organisation and chambers of commerce – both of which will be able to offer you business advice, help you to develop your skills and make useful contacts. They’re also a great way to raise the profile of your business in your local area.

Go digital

Embrace the digital age and go paperless where possible when it comes to your office and record keeping. Look to provide electronic invoices or payslips for example, so that you save on stationery, printers, postage and storage space.

Explore your marketing choices

On the digital theme, consider how you could use social media, your company website and online directories to market your business. Many of these marketing activities can be undertaken at no cost whatsoever, and they could bring your business to a wider audience too.

When writing digital content, be consistent in your use of business name and contact details across the various channels, while writing unique text for each one too. Describe your trade, the services you offer, the localities you serve and show photos of your recent projects. Ask your happy customers to write online reviews too.

Also, write a regular blog for your website, approach this by thinking of the questions your customers most frequently ask you and then answer them via each blog post. Present your services or products as the answer to their dilemmas (subtly); and also offer them seasonal advice too.

Consider your insurance cover carefully

You neither want to risk taking out too much or too little cover, and there may be some statutory requirements for your business – like employers’ liability insurance. So, to ensure you have the right cover at the best price, talk to an experienced insurance broker to find the right policies and level of cover for your business.

Do you have vehicles for your business? Well, when it comes to insuring them take your time to find the right deal and purchase temporary car insurance while you’re considering your options for your annual cover.

Consider your finances and accounts

Be mindful of committing to perpetual financial payments that you don’t have to, like those you’d incur from the lease or rental costs of a car or equipment. Consider buying second-hand and outright, rather than placing the burden of sizable and regular direct debits on bank account when it could be avoided. Plus, you’ll own physical assets that you could make work for you or sell if the need arose.

When it comes to your finances and accounts, it may well prove beneficial to engage the services of a professional accountant – yes there would be a cost involved, but they may help you to make savings in other ways. A chartered accountant will ensure you are meeting your financial obligations and that your tax returns are in good order. They can advise you on the best businesses support systems to have in place, help you to make efficiencies, and plan for the future. Plus, they’ll free up your time to concentrate on the parts of the job you love.

Your business

So there you have a few ways in which you can save on the costs of running your business and where to find advice on how to run it as efficiently as possible.